Purple Desert Sky

6x6 quick watercolor desert landscape done last of August, an imaginary scene using leftover paint. I thought the sky should be purple to frame the various cactus. This is in my Master's Touch sketchbook, 80 lb paper. COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2026

Saguaro Sun Flowers

22x15 watercolor redo of an earlier painting entitled Odessa Sunflowers. With this endeavor, I've placed cactus line drawings on tracing paper over the image then drew those lines painting in and around the new shapes. This one was done on 140 lb Kilimanjaro cold press paper back in May. Original piece was a demo done for the Odessa Art Association in April 2015. COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2026

Pink Desert Saguaro

15x5.5 watercolor on Blick 140 lb cold press paper, an imaginary pink desert scene done a couple of weeks ago while on a trip out of state. The pink tones of the sand echoes throughout the sky and other desert landscape parts such as vegetation, rocks, hills, etc. The icon of the desert is the stately saguaro which I never tire from painting. COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2025

Arizona Rock Cliffs

5.5x8.5 watercolor with White Nights paints done recently, an imaginary desert scene looking like Arizona, in sketchbook 80 lb paper. COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2025

Charming Cactus

8x5.25 watercolor desert landscape on Moleskine paper done the first day of August using White Nights paints, painting wet on dry, with this realistic grouping of prickly pear cactus pods. The blooms are always interesting to see and to paint. COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2024

Red Rock Towers

12x9 watercolor on Fabriano 140 lb hot press paper done recently, an imaginary desert scene featuring red rocks of canyon areas of Utah and Arizona. COPYRIGHT 2024 Kay Smith

Way out West

6x8 watercolor on 140 lb cold press paper by Masters Touch, a scene from multiple refs compiled into one. Love the terrain and the obvious dangerous trek people made going in a westward direction. This was painted last of January. COPYRIGHT 2024 Kay Smith

Southern Arizona Saguaro

7x9 watercolor over pencil sketch of a scene around Tucson complete with tall saguaros. This is on Masters Touch 80 lb paper done yesterday with Daniel Smith/American Journey paints. COPYRIGHT 2024 Kay Smith

Desert Canyon and Cactus

6x6 watercolor with White Nights paints on Masters Touch 80 lb paper done at first of the month from one of the many desert landscape and cactus images just waiting to be painted. COPYRIGHT 2023 Kay Smith

Cactus Melee

6x6 watercolor, Brusho using olive and moss greens plus grey, and India ink in Masters Touch sketchbook done in May, another in my imaginary cactus series working wet into wet and applying line if needed. With this one ink lines were quickly sketched in first then color followed when dry. COPYRIGHT 2023 Kay Smith

Desert Mountains

3.75x6 watercolor on 140 lb cold press Canson paper done last week, a miniature landscape featuring imaginary mountain range in the distance and desert terrain in foreground. COPYRIGHT 2022 Kay Smith

Saguaro Fire

7x5.25 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press painted a few days ago, expanding upon my series of saguaro cactus scenes. I this, the landscape can be seen as red hot desert land. Darks made with indigo and sepia and carbazole violet. COPYRIGHT 2022 Kay Smith

Rocky Cliffs

5.25 x 8.25 ink, watercolor and acrylics done this afternoon as part of the monthly southwest/western challenge on WetCanvas.  This is in my new grunge journal over a partially gessoed page, which is why the acrylics were used as watercolor too thin to adhere properly.
COPYRIGHT 2017 Kay Smith      Email:  1971ks@att.net to purchase via PayPal or for more information.

Red Desert Cactus

6x11 of a cactus scene.  I struggle with acrylics and with landscapes so it was a learning experience. This is on gessoed matboard that I varnished afterward, using Bob Burridge's color wheel (Munsell). Red was first chosen for the dominant color that has turquoise opposite, and two spice colors are yellow-green and purple-blue.  An orange-red underpainting was put on to begin the painting and that top sky is that hue.  Faint mountains can be seen in the far distance.
COPYRIGHT 2017 Kay Smith             Email:   1971ks@att.net to purchase via PayPal         Cost:  $195

Tucson Adobe

15x15 watercolor of an old adobe church house finished yesterday, shot on one of many trips to Tucson, Arizona.  From the grey brown hills behind the it, to the cactus, red yucca, and other vegetation this southwest desert scene is sure to enchant you.  Its wooden cross with a bell beside it to keep it company rounds out the composition while dark clouds move across the sky.  I particularly enjoy its decorated doorway and vigas.
Image COPYRIGHT 2016 Kay Smith.

Arizona Landscape

4x5.5 watercolor and ink on paper, a magazine card from Southwest Art, that was begging me to paint a scene.  So I used one of my many cactus, yucca, sagebrush, and other desert photos taken in Arizona around Tucson and Phoenix.  Pen used was Pigma Micron 01 and some opaque watercolors and gouache were also put to use today on the saguaros.  A white gel pen used for depicting old, dead branches in foreground.  It is a sunset scence hence the deep shadows and orange glow to the land and its inhabitants, those icons of lore.
Image COPYRIGHT 2015 Kay Smith.

Red Mesa and Buffalo

12x24 watercolor on Arches 140 lb cold press paper, painted wet in wet today.  Signal Peak mountain is east of our town of Big Spring in west Texas and is part of the Great Plains where the Cherokees roamed.  In this imaginary scene I ignored local color and made the terrain red and red orange while the animals are pale gold with cool highlights.

Buffalo Gap

11x15 watercolor on handmade paper, 140 lb cold press, an imaginary landscape called Buffalo Gap. Seriously, there is a town/area by that name and I was just there last weekend. It is by Abilene, TX. This scene was entered into an online challenge this week.

Zesty Zebra - Reworked Oil Painting

I've been working on this fellow for a week off and on after sketching him directly on top of another oil. It measures 42x32 inches. Previous work was a turban clad man holding a sword or dagger, most mean appearing and one of those mass-produced items from old Mexico. If anyone wants to see what it was before leave me a comment or two and I'll post him.